Esoterica Tobacciana Pembroke

Light yet complex overall flavor profile. Light to medium in strength and taste. Cognac flavor complements the base tobaccos well. Lit and burned well. A marked contrast, for example, to Mac B's HH Syrian, which offers offers a smoother, stronger and tastier blend of somewhat similar tobacco components. Solid 2 stars.

I'll admit at the outset I do not have a sophisticated palate. I'm not a big fan of English blends (anticipating having to dodge incoming flak as I type those words) because latakia generally overwhelms all the other flavors. Aromatic blends have great room note but they usually taste as though a wad of cheap incense has been crammed into a pipe. I like cavendish if the casing isn't overpowering. I've been searching for somethng like Pembroke for decades. The cognac topping is subtle. The blend is balanced such that not any one type of tobacco in the blend is dominant. It is a bit moist right out of the tin as some have said but (no offense intended) I can't understand the uproar. If a tobacco is too wet, fluff it and let it set for a while. If it is too dry, throw it into a jar and toss a humidifying ceramic plug or even a moistened piece of chalk in with it.

This might be a good blend for someone wanting to transition from aros to English blends. It is an excellent English blend that is very subtly enhanced by the cognac. I recommend this blend as a late night treat along with a tumbler of excellent bourbon or snifter of brandy. It's one of my favorites. Great stuff!!

puff puff yum puff puff yummy repeat.

for those obsessed like me about penzance and the like this is a reasonable substitute while they're out of stock!

the cognac casing is not noticeable immediately, but be patient and relax and it folds into the palette nicely. It tastes a little like margate mixed with penzance with a top flavor of cognac(ish)

a little mottled flake mixed with broken ribbons packs a little haphazard but a womans tamp is all you need and then top it off with another pinch and give it a mans tamp and light.

i expected a false light with this one but one light is all it took.

i got nice creamy smoke. a little light feeling in the mouth but the way it filled the room proved nice and thick. this one passes the smoke ring test. not the thickest smoke but still pleasant.

nice aroma and flavor for the latakia lover.

i tend to smoke good tobacco like a fish gasping for water on a boat deck, and thats how i went after this blend from start to finish.

I haven't got a bloody clue about this one.. Seriously!

Initially it tasted to me like a ribbon cut version of Penzance. Orientals definately present, I'd say over the Latakia. The flavouring is there, but done subtly. I just don't know. What it DOES lack is a creaminess which I have also failed to discover in other Esoterica blends.

Presbyterian mixture is creamy, and this isn't. I like PM more if I'm honest but this is a decent enough tobacco to give it a whirl. As someone has previously commented, if this is the 'Slutty' sister to Margate (which I've not tried to date), then I can only say that Margate must be a pretty unexciting date.

I was expecting a hair cascading, full on bright red lipstick, sultry goddess. What I actually got was a tightly pony tailed, thinned lipped, civil servant worker who'd donned a bit of 'lippy' for the day.

Damn you Esoterica with your catchy arty labelling. Blatant Terry Pratchett plagiarism if ever there was!!!!!!!!

6/10 overall rating from me.

I know people either love this stuff or hate it. Many years ago this was my main smoke. I took to blending it with Margate for a while too(marries great). I decided to get away from any topping at all for a long time, and smoked Balkans mostly. I just cracked a tin after many years of not smoking this fine tobacco. It's very luxurious in the tin, and smokes beautifully most of the way down the bowl. One thing I like about this blend is the room note. I don't get any hassle whatsoever, and my golfing buddies use to crave the aroma. I'm glad to rekindle this old friendship. It's best to have dedicated pipes for this stuff though. It does leave its presence known.

Also, I must add that G. F. Germain/Esoterica Tobaccos has demoted itself to irrelevance and insignificance by keeping a stranglehold on the the market for its products and not keep production level with demand.

Essentially, Esoterica blends are a fiction, they don't exist anymore, no one has any for sale and I suggest they remove them from their websites - they all say the same thing,,, "Out of Stock"..... 🙁

Customers (like me) feel gouged and abused for our loyal fandom. Thus I suggest all you lovers of Penzance, never buy it again. Buy Plum Pudding instead and send the message you are tired of being gouged and abused by Esoterica's lack of concern for its customers.

I was able to sample Pembroke for free thanks to a generous friend of mine. 2 bowls was all I could manage. So lets begin.

The sample was aged and a tad dry having an almost ideal moisture content. It burned well and evenly with no relights after the first 2 matches, that's a plus anytime.

However, that's about all the plus points I can force upon this mix - simply put, I did not like it at all.

The orientals dominated (for what little tobacco taste that got by the casing), with rare glimpses of latakia taste after purposeful searching on my part. The casing was strong with a taste I found sickening, not pleasant for me. The closest description I can come up with for this is an artificial cherry taste that gave me a rich, sickening/sour effect. eeek!

Cognac it was not - in my opinion.

Maybe the awful casing was dissolved in Cognac as a delivery solvent? I'd buy that at least.

I enjoy and appreciate blends across the pipe tobacco spectrum from cased aromatics to latakia heavy blends to VA flakes, to English/Balkans - and thus I tried to find some redeeming qualities that suited my palate - I just couldn't do it.

Sorry Esoterica and Pembroke fans, not for me.

Not recommended.

Well, I just love this stuff. Not a huge fan of boozey tobacco in general, I don't mind the occassional navy cav with rum. This however, is such a lovely marriage of a premium English with a delicate cognac, that it's in a class all by itself. Not going to be for everyone, and it certainly taints pipes.

Not quite as heavy in flavour as I was expecting - this could be a summer smoke for me.

Though I have been smoking Penzance and Margate with a great deal of pleasure for years, I had not got down to trying Pembroke until recently.

It does come a bit more moist than usual for English mixtures and some drying out helps, but is not essential. The tin aroma is awesome: rich, opulent, luxurious. The cognac is skilfully married to the base tobaccos.

In the pipe, the promise of the tin aroma is not belied. The taste is rich, almost incredibly rich. In more than forty years of pipe smoking I have never come across a mixture so full in taste and aroma. That having been said, Pembroke for me is party food - enjoyable on occasion, but a daily diet would probably lead to high levels of cholestrol.

If alcohol has to be put into tobacco at all, this is the way to do it. Whether or not you like Pembroke in the end, it is absolutely worth trying once.

Notes: This needs to dry out a bit before you smoke it to allow it to burn well and optimize the flavors. It also benefits quite a bit from aging, and gets much better with a few months in the tin. I have smoked a few ounces of various vintages of this and have found it best in a Dunhill Group 3-4 briar.

Appearance: A thin-cut golden and brown to black ribbon, fully rubbed out. It comes quite wet in the tin, almost sticky, and benefits enormously from allowing it to dry out substantially. Without this, you will likely not fully appreciate the flavor.

Aroma: Fruitcake, frankincense, stewed plums and autumn fruit. French cognac, honey, Brie.

Taste: Can nip the tongue a bit if one is not careful. After allowing it to dry out to a proper moisture level, it burns quite well to a fine grey-white ash, leaving no dottle at all. Plum pudding, Christmas cake, myrrh, frankincense, cognac, honey, raisins, stewed fruits, citron. Very soft, very subtle flavors. Rather subdued and very quiet on the palate, demanding attention to obtain full enjoyment.

Comparisons: Similar to Esoterica's Margate, but with added complexity and sharper cognac notes, which make it a markedly different blend. Much darker (but not heavier) in overall complexion than, say, Dunhill My Mixture No. 965.

Bottom Line: For those who enjoy tobacco blends imbued with spirits, a must-try. Those seeking a mild, subdued English blend with the added complexity of cognac will be pleased.